


wander this world with you

by Devarsi



Category: Fallout 4
Genre: M/M, Oral Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-25
Updated: 2016-03-08
Packaged: 2018-05-23 04:57:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6105634
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Devarsi/pseuds/Devarsi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>snippets of two idiots trying to figure out what the hell they're doing. not in chronological order</p><p>rating and tags will change</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> G. Isaac and MacCready talk about ~feelings~

Isaac had fancied many theories about what post-apocalyptic America might be like, without ever thinking he'd be there to see it, two hundred years in the future, but he continued to be surprised as he explored the commonwealth. The giant deadly lizards had been a surprise, for one, and the robot clone infiltrations felt like they'd be bordering on the absurd even for an old TV show. Perhaps most surprising was his inordinate fondness of a short behatted man currently trying to wrestle open a dented can of cram. 

The sniper was decidedly the exact opposite of Isaac's type. The man was scruffy, always complaining whenever Isaac wanted to help anyone without first pressuring them for money - he didn't care if Isaac was the general and it was his job to help people - and constantly criticized his tactics on the battlefield as if he wasn't six years younger, give or take a few centuries, without military training.

And then there was the frustrating inability to just accept an act of kindness without acting like he had some colossal debt to repay.

Isaac sat by the fire, one hand idly stirring the fire with a stick, MacCready across from him, eating like they didn't have 50 pounds of disgusting food in their packs and already eying the food Isaac had yet to touch. Habit of growing up in a cave full of orphans. Man, the apocalypse was weird.

"Lookin' pretty thoughtful there, boss."

Isaac glanced over, but MacCready still looked mostly interested in his food, moving on to a box of what had allegedly been apples. As he watched him eat he considered whether he should finally mention the topic that had been nagging at his mind for the last week or so. 

"It's not my business...but why haven't you gone back to Duncan?"

At this MacCready finally looked over at him with a strange expression.

"You still haven't found your son."

"Yeah, but...don't get me wrong, you're the best sniper I know and you're good to have around, but there are plenty of people now willing to help me. I'm not just stumbling around the commonwealth on my own. There's Danse, the brotherhood -" MacCready scrunched his nose, but he ignored it, "the minutemen. There's no reason you need to stay."

"You paid me."

"Caps which you gave back, you stubborn prick."

"So what? You're trying to chase me off now?" The food seemed to be temporarily forgotten. A true miracle. "I thought we were getting along."

Isaac was being scowled at, and he sighed and combed his fingers through his hair.

"No, I'm afraid you're staying here instead of going to your son because of some imagined onus."

Now he was just looking confused and even more annoyed.  "Imagined what?"

"A...because you think you owe me a debt."

"You helped me with Winlock and Barnes, helped me find the cure for Duncan. I don't like owing people."

Now he was looking really irritated, and Isaac was wishing he'd kept his damn mouth shut.

"But you don't! That's what I mean!" Isaac was vaguely aware of the ridiculous hand gestures he was making. "I help everyone. You complain about it constantly. But I don't go expecting them to...to stay away from their family so they can follow me around and get into dangerous situations." 

MacCready had returned to picking at the last of his food, but his expression was still decidedly annoyed. Isaac looked at him, then the fire, and back again, chewing his lip in contemplation for a moment before getting up, bringing the box of sugar bombs with him as he moved to sit next to the sniper. He stretched his considerably longer legs out, staring at the fire. The darkness had deepened since they first decided to stop, with only their small circle illuminated now. Dogmeat sat at the edge of the carport, providing some security for them in relative peace.

"We are getting along," he finally decided to continue, quieter now, tilting the box towards MacCready as a peace offering. "That's why I'm concerned for you. What about Duncan, if something happens to you?"

This was obviously not the best approach. MacCready stiffened, purposefully staring at the fire. 

"I can handle myself. I have been for years," he gritted out after a moment.

Isaac had never been great at emotions, infamous growing up for being the worst person to come to with any kind of emotional problem. He had no idea how to deal with this. It wasn't a secret that he and MacCready had had disagreements over...well, basically everything, but it had never been a serious problem, or at least he thought...he lifted a hand slightly, hesitated, then laid it softly on his friend's shoulder. It didn't seem to help, but at least it wasn't shrugged off.

"I know. I'm sorry."

"I'm still here because you're a friend. I want to help you find your son. Besides, the institute's still around, it's dangerous here."

"I just didn't want you to get hurt on my account. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you because of me."

Silence filled the carport, still slightly uneasy but less tense. Isaac realized his hand was still awkwardly sitting on his shoulder, and he shifted to fold his hands in his lap, resisting the urge to start fidgeting. He hadn't intended for any kind of serious conversation, asking on impulse and immediately wishing he hadn't. Judging by the look MacCready was giving the box, it had some seriously interesting nutrition info. He dreaded to think about how disgustingly unhealthy they were, and wondered the effects two hundred years would have on that sort of thing before deciding he didn't want to know that either.

Finally, MacCready gave up, setting the box down, still-uneaten, and adjusted his cap. 

"Well, that's a surprise. I was starting to think you were just trying to run me off." 

"I-what? Why?"

"Well, while I'm sure the settlers are loving it, I've been spending a lot more time at Sanctuary than I'd ever want to. The defenses there are awful, you really should work on moving the turret placement, can't get a good night's sleep with that...plus you seemed focused on the Railroad. You and Deacon have been quite the duo lately."

Isaac furrowed his brows. "You've made it pretty clear how you feel about the Railroad, I figured you wouldn't want to come along. Sanctuary's safer than synth rescue missions, at least. And Deacon's a fun guy, but - wait, are you seriously jealous of Deacon?"

MacCready scowled again, tipping his cap down slightly and hunching his shoulders, but the mood was considerably lighter now. Isaac started to laugh, then stopped himself.

"Sorry, that's just...I don't even know the guy, not really. I like him but he sure is fond of lying. I half wonder if he'll just take off one day and never be seen again."

Isaac decided to risk shifting slightly closer, MacCready already back to slouching in a far more normal pose, actually looking at him instead of glaring at inanimate objects. Progress.

"I like you, and I like him. I like all my friends. It's not mutually exclusive, no matter how much some of them act like they want to kill each other. Of course I want you stick around, but I don't want to pressure you into doing anything."

MacCready snorted. "I'm pretty sure you couldn't even if you wanted to."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Well it wasn't." There was an amused twitch of his lips and he seemed more relaxed. 

"You're a good friend, even despite all the complaining whenever I so much as pick up a desk lamp." Isaac grinned as MacCready scrunched his nose. "I'm glad you have my back out there, and I'm sorry I wasn't clear about...well, anything."

"I'm just not used to people giving a - sh- crap. But you've been a good friend. Thank you. For everything."

Isaac thought for a second, mulling over the probably stupid idea in his head before he decided to give it a shot and hope it didn't make things awkward. 

"If we're being perfectly frank here, I had kind of...hoped maybe we could be more than friends." 

Oh god, he definitely made it awkward. And, damn it, his face was red like a veritable high-schooler and he clasped his hands together to stop himself from fiddling with his hair, but that probably made it even worse.

"I...I really don't know what to say."

Shit. "Sorry. That wasn't really appropriate."

MacCready shook his head slightly. "I still miss Lucy to death. I think I always will. But at some point you just have to keep living."

Tentatively Isaac reached out and took MacCready's ridiculously small hand under his own and slightly squeezed.

"I don't want to rush you. Whatever you're comfortable with. I'm just glad to have you by my side."

There was a moment of hesitation before Isaac finally decided to bend down - rather awkwardly, given his height - to kiss him, slowly, waiting for any sign that this might be too much. It wasn't much of a kiss, more a clumsy clashing of teeth, and MacCready laughed as Isaac threw his arm around his shoulder and they watched the dying remnants of the fire. Isaac idly brushed the tips of his fingers across the duster, the closeness and calm allowing him to examine the sniper more closely. His nose was crooked, clothes past needing to be replaced, dirt covering every visible inch of him and, quite frankly, he smelled disgusting, though undoubtedly he was just as bad. Isaac grinned fondly, a funny fluttering in his chest completely unbefitting of the man who spent his days going after raiders with a minigun. It was all too tempted to get caught up and set there even as it became completely dark, but he knew they would have to move at some point. 

"I guess we'd better get to sleep. It's a long way to Sanctuary hills, the amazingly wonderful and well-defended settlement with the dashing general." MacCready snorted and stood, stretching before gathering their scattered belongings to bring into what remained of the house. Dogmeat seemed to understand they were moving and stood, following them into the room they'd cleared. Isaac settled his pack into the far corner, next to a shelf full of curious old world knick-knacks, and flopped onto his mattress, eyes closing immediately and grinning. Though he was in an ugly house with a perpetual musty smell, sleeping on what was definitely one of the top ten most disgusting mattresses he'd ever seen, and his foot wouldn't stop itching, he felt pretty damn lucky.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> E. The Castle is arguably the best settlement. Also they actually have sex in this one

"So, Mac? You know that project I've been working on?"

"You mean the one where you leave me to babysit a drive-in for weeks at a time while you run off and do all the fun stuff?"

"Exactly. Well it's finally finished. Or at least finished enough to show you. I think you'll like it. It's a new settlement."

"Oh, a settlement. I love those."

"This one's better, I promise."

Clearly Mac wasn't convinced, but Isaac was certain he could win him over. He was itching to finally finish their trip, but it seemed the local mutated insect population was intent on bothering them the entire way. By the time the building was in view it was a lot later than Isaac had hoped and the two of them were covered in bug guts. Not the way he'd anticipated the evening going, but he could work with it.

MacCready wiped the splattered remains of the last bloatbug that went at them, grimacing in disgust before catching Isaac grinning widely at him and arched an eyebrow.

"Something funny?"

"Another part of the surprise. C'mon, we're here."

He practically bounded to meet Preston, who had seen their approach, and spun around to gesture at the castle with a flourish.

"Welcome to Fort Independence!"

MacCready examined the walls as he went to join them. He could see where the minutemen had been rebuilding the walls, and eyed the turrets appreciatively as Isaac clapped Preston on the shoulder.

"We had to clear out the mirelurks, and it was pretty worn down, but Preston's been an amazing help. We've got artillery, an armoury, and - get this - an industrial water purifier. So it's a good thing I had you carry all those tin cans with you, they're partially responsible for you being able to have a hot non-radiated bath for once. Maybe you should complain less when I give you incredibly useful definitely-not-junk to help carry."

"Not going to happen," he said, but he was distracted. They'd entered the Castle properly, and MacCready grinned as he looked at the work Isaac and the minutemen had done. It looked good, like he'd be able to actually get a good night's sleep instead of worrying about a raider getting past the incompetent settlers.

"There's still a lot of work to do - there were beds already here, but I was hoping to make it a little bit cushier. Plus there's not much in the way of food production." He paused, then gestured behind him. "I've gotta talk to Preston about some work around here. There are some places to bathe over there, if you care to get rid of the bug entrails on your face before eating. Or hell, I don't know, maybe they'd enhance the flavour. Vegetable soup's pretty bland, but at least it's not irradiated."

MacCready was on his way before Isaac had finished rambling. He was dirty, tired, and hungry, and couldn't think of much that sounded more appealing than a non-radiated bath. His directions were vague, but it didn't take too much wandering to find the room Isaac had meant. As soon as he found it he burst out laughing - there were three bathtubs, and hideously ugly rugs hanging from the ceiling to try to give some semblance of privacy but instead looking absolutely absurd. The only other feature of the room was a wall shelf with plain, slightly worn but clean clothes. Though he wasn't sure if he was meant to take them but he had nothing else and really didn't care, he wasn't going to put the duster back on until it had been cleaned as well.

Pushing a rug aside to reach the bathtub, he started removing his hat, jacket, and pack, not wanting to leave them out of his sight, no matter how much Isaac trusted these settlers. After a moment of consideration he set his rifle as close to the tub as he could. It wouldn't do him any good short range and surprised, but it felt better having it close.

The water felt like heaven but quickly turned a disgusting colour as layers of dirt washed off of him. There was no soap, but that was no surprise, he just scrubbed at his skin with his hands, wondering how long they would be staying at the castle and whether he'd have time to properly clean his duster.

It didn't feel like he'd been there very long, just slumped and thinking, but Isaac gave a polite little knock at the doorframe and called in.

"Just checking you haven't drowned. It's been an hour."

Had it? That definitely didn't seem right, but he wasn't the one with the pip-boy.

"Don't even joke about drowning. This place is still too close to the water for comfort."

"Right. Sorry. There's still some soup out there. Still no lights, but I'm sure you'll be able to find it.

"Surprised you haven't been in here cleaning up, if it's been that long."

"I wanted to eat first. Thought I'd get it out of the way before spending the whole night trying to get dried blood out of my hair." MacCready couldn't see him, stepping out of the tub now but still behind a somewhat gross-smelling blue rug, but could picture him running his fingers through his too-long hair. Despite the dangers, the man's vanity had kept him from cutting his long hair, and pulling it back could only do so much.

In lieu of any sort of towel, MacCready just awkwardly shook himself off, frowning at the now-wet stone floors. That was going to be a problem at some point. He dressed quickly, glad it was warm enough that being soaked wouldn't be too much of a problem. Stepping out he could see Isaac standing in his underwear, folding up his clothes to leave by his pack, apparently unconcerned by all the people who'd be willing to steal it and run despite his generosity. Noticing him, Isaac turned and grinned, trying to go for self-confident but faltering.

He looked good, despite the dirt and scratches that covered him. Life on the road together meant they'd seen each other without clothes, of course, but usually they were more focused on not getting snuck up on and shot. Or at least, that had been his own priority, but in retrospect it was very possible his companion had been more easily distracted. Feeling his face grow red, he grabbed his cap and pushed it back on his head, not caring that it was still dirty. 

"You should probably go eat. I severely underestimated how much people liked bland soup around here." 

There was no way he was going to leave his valuables behind, even if he hadn't seen anyone else even coming near this part of the castle so far. Slinging his pack over his shoulder and pulling on his boots, he tried to focus on the unusual texture of the shirt instead of the sight he was leaving behind him. As he exited the stone building he blinked, trying to adjust to the darkness. There was hardly any light aside from the low fire which he approached cautiously, squinting at the vague shapes in the shadow. A settler gave him an exhausted smile from the other side of the cooking station and gestured at the horribly chipped and stained bowls sitting on an equally battered crate.

MacCready didn't understand all the complaining Isaac did about food in the wasteland - sure, there were wildly differing qualities of food, but you grew up appreciating any food that wasn't horribly irradiated. Isaac had bemoaned the loss of spices more times than he could count, but the plain tatos and carrots tasted like heaven as far as he was concerned. Soon the settler left, and MacCready heard soft footsteps behind him as he finished the last of the soup. If anyone else had wanted any, too bad for them.

Isaac perched next to him, leaned across to brush lips before putting out the small remains of the campfire. They sat in comfortable silence for a while, Isaac leaning slightly against him, now-empty bowl set to the side. He could see well enough now, tilting his head up to look at the thin sliver of moon, and Isaac took the opportunity to kiss the side of his neck before speaking quietly. 

"So. I had a witty line but I forgot it somewhere in the middle of shooting all those bugs. Point is, there are some bonuses to being general, namely your own quarters. And I _may_ have taken the best bed for myself. You're a terrible influence on me."

MacCready chuckled, and it seems strangely loud compared to the silent whirring of the generators and the steady breathing beside him. "About time. You should be charging people to stay here."

"Nonsense. Then I'd start missing people applauding my great generosity. I do love the attention." Isaac's smile faded, and he looked at MacCready with a softer, more serious expression. "But, you know. Whatever you want. I don't want to rush anything."

It had been something that had been suggested, before, but never acted on. Always the wrong place, wrong time, and Isaac had mentioned wanting more information on things like diseases and protection in the wasteland. MacCready hadn't exactly gotten a great education in these things, so he wondered which one of Isaac's poor friends got questioned about _that_.

For a moment he tried to figure out what he wanted to say, but the soft look those brown eyes were giving him weren't helping him focus. Finally he just settled on "I know."

Isaac stood up, and MacCready wavered a moment, not realizing how much he'd been leaning against the taller man. With a grin Isaac offered him a hand. "Shall we?"

MacCready's first instinct was to ignore him to be contrary, but after a second he let the man pull him to his feet. With his other hand, Isaac plucked the cap off of his head and placed it on his own with a self-satisfied look. Ushering him back to the castle, Isaac gave a large wave to a settler MacCready hadn't noticed keeping watch on the top of the wall.

"G'night!"

"Night, general."

"I'd rather you didn't wake up everyone in the fu- friggin' building."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

They were barely whispering. Most of the beds were inexplicably exposed, in small alcoves clearly visible from the halls. He couldn't imagine sleeping like that with so many people around, and was very glad he was friends with the general. 

Thankfully Isaac's quarters had not only a sturdy wooden door but a lock. The room seemed to double as an office, though MacCready wasn't really interested in seeing the details of the papers strewn across the rather nice desk, though he _did_  have some particular mental images of what they could replace them with.

As soon as the door was locked, Isaac was leaning down to kiss him again, and MacCready took advantage to snatch his hat back, though Isaac just grabbed it again and tossed it to the corner with a laugh. Hands were working at his shoulder, and it took him a moment to realize the man was trying to get him to drop his pack. Letting it slip to the floor, he deepened the kiss, feeling the permanently chapped lips. 

He was surprised when hands went to his hips and hefted him up. Flailing slightly in confusion, he couldn't help but laugh at Isaac's failed attempt to carry him to the bed, setting him back on his feet before they'd even crossed half of the room.

"How can somebody that short be so damn heavy?"

"With how much you like toting that minigun around, I thought you would've developed some actual muscle, but you're just looking like a weak vaultie."

"Hey now, you're going to bruise my sensitive ego. Rude."

This time it was Macready manhandling him, Isaac letting him push him the rest of the way to the bed. They kissed as they shifted to a less awkward position, Isaac more fully on the bed with MacCready's elbows to either side of his head. The familiar taste of carrots still on his mouth joined something new and pleasant and distinctly _Isaac_. 

As he explored Isaac's mouth with his own, Isaac's hands had wandered beneath his shirt, brushing lightly across his skin, pausing slightly at every tiny scar. After a moment the hands went back to the bed, and MacCready missed the touch for a moment until they were at his shoulders, pushing him back.

"You're getting those gross shoes all over my nice bed. Well. Nice is a bit of an exaggeration, but still."

He didn't waste any time kicking them off as Isaac pulled his shirt over his head before pushing him back down, positions reversed, and somewhat clumsily pulled MacCready's shirt off as well. The taller man give him a brief kiss on the lips before trailing down his neck and planting kisses down his chest, making MacCready squirm while he vaguely wondered what he should be doing with his hands. Eventually he settled for just gripping the sheets, breath hitching as one hand palmed over his cock through the denim and a mouth bit down slightly at his collarbone.

"Your beard tickles," he grunted, and Isaac laughed into his neck. 

"Your just jealous you can't grow one."

"Get back up here so I can kiss you already."

"Better idea. Take off your pants."

MacCready sat up enough to strip the rest of the way, fumbling with the buttons on his jeans which seemed to be far more difficult to undo than they should have been. Isaac had slid off the bed and was now sitting patiently on the floor, pants cast to the side. MacCready pushed his own off the rest of the way and immediately soft lips were at his inner thigh, fingers gripping his hips. It seemed like an eternity before Isaac was finally pulling off his underwear, but his lips were still brushing against his hip bone, his stomach, pointedly avoiding his cock.

"Friggin' tease," he said, voice cracking slightly. Isaac laughed, breath warm against his cock. He was about to complain some more until suddenly Isaac had his mouth around his cock, and he was biting hard on his lip to keep from swearing. Thinking up alternatives for his foul language habits was hard to focus on.

His hands moved to grip Isaac's still-damp hair, steadying but not pulling, and he resisted the urge to close his eyes. The sight was too good to miss: his former boss between his knees, face flushed and hands kneading his hips as his tongue worked his shaft. It took considerable effort to keep from bucking his hips forward, especially as Isaac moaned around him.

"I'm - sh - ngh."

Trying not to swear was becoming more difficult by the second. He wouldn't be able to last long, and he wondered briefly whether they'd be able to do this again in the morning before they headed out on some other meaningless task. Isaac pulled back but before he could get more complaining his tongue was licking down his shaft and _fuck_ had it been too long. Just jacking off required more privacy than had been available for ages.

Isaac's hand was grasping his own erection, he noticed before being distracted again by the man's lips enveloping him again, agonizingly slowly, and this time his hips did jerk forward, prompting Isaac to move one hand to hold his hip. His tongue was swirling around the tip of his leaking cock, and he bit back a groan as Isaac hummed around him.

"Not gonna -"

He threw his head back, came with a jerk, barely aware that he was starting to actually pull on Isaac's hair now, and let his hands slip away as Isaac pulled back. Though he was suddenly breathless and exhausted and it was _really_ difficult to focus he couldn't look away from the obscene grin, mouth dripping with cum, making a mess of that irritating beard. A few more thrusts into his own hand and Isaac was over the edge with him, coming with a barely-muffled shout. He quickly wiped off his face with a discarded shirt, shakily standing to join MacCready on the bed.

They laid there, warm and content and mind more than a bit fuzzy. Isaac's legs were intertwined with his own, arms wrapped around him, and MacCready's eyes started to flutter closed, feeling safe and happy as he listened to the steady breathing behind him.

Before he nodded off completely, he was surprised by Isaac untangling himself and lifting up slightly, peering over the edge of the bed and scowling at the stain from where he'd come on the floor.

"Well...guess I gotta get a new rug."

And with a half-hearted shrug, he flopped back and almost instantly fell asleep. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've never written actually written a sex scene. Hopefully that isn't too obvious.


	3. the start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> T. maccready meets isaac

The reformed subway station was quiet, without even Magnolia's singing audible in the back room. A drink, a comfortable chair - it would've been nice if he hadn't been waiting for someone to hire him or try to shoot him. As it was, even the bottle of beer did nothing to soothe the uneasiness, though he'd barely touched it, feeling slightly sick. 

No work, no caps, with the awful haunting image of his son back home suffering and dying without him there. The gunners had finally found him to send their message, and he dreaded the next inevitable meeting.

A man had drifted in halfway through the conversation, trying to look like he wasn't eavesdropping and rifling through the drawers in the corner. A quick glance to see that he was unarmed and apparently uninvolved with the situation beyond being nosy, then his attention went right back to the pieces of work in front of him.

When they left, the man stayed in his corner for a while, inexplicably picking up an empty bottle and other trash that had been sitting there and tucking it in his bag before turning to MacCready.  

"Look, man. If you're preaching about the Atom, or looking for a friend, you've got the wrong guy. If you need a hired gun...then maybe we can talk."

The man sat down on the couch, twisting slightly to face MacCready and looking far too comfortable for the situation, like he was visiting an old friend's house. "Depends. Who were they?" He jabbed a thumb towards the doorway.

When he explained, the guy acted like he had no idea who the gunners were, but also didn't look very concerned. He just smiled politely, and MacCready thought absently that the guy's overly groomed moustache just made him look like a jackass. 

"Now, what about you? How do I know I won't end up with a bullet in my back?"

For a second he looked surprised, maybe a bit confused, before laughing nervously. 

"You...don't, I guess. But you're just as likely to shoot me."

"Can't argue with that. I'll tell you what. Price is 250 caps. Up front. And there's no room for bargaining."

Surprisingly, the guy didn't even attempt to bargain, which he frowned slightly at. He was either an idiot or was up to something, and he wasn't fond of either idea. But regardless of the warning in the back of his mind, he was too desperate for caps to try to back out now.

As suddenly as he had sat the man was up again, tossing him a sack of caps which MacCready painstakingly counted out. When he looked up the man reached his hand out, and MacCready paused for a moment before accepting the handshake. 

"Name's Isaac."

"MacCready." 

\--

Being worried about getting shot in the back was ridiculous. It was far more likely to get shot in the front from a stray bullet as Isaac rained hell with a minigun. The man was deadly but loud, chaotic, making it hard to work with subtlety and precision. As shrapnel from a hand grenade flew close to him he shouted despite himself and glared. Some days he thought about shooting him in the head and taking the rest of the man's damn caps for his own, but he mowed through so many enemies and split the loot generously it was worth sticking around for now. 

He just hoped he'd live long enough to be able to actually use the caps. Being around Isaac made it very hard to keep his promise and not start swearing worse than he had as mayor.

But the man was a force of nature, hunting down Kellogg to bash his head in and picking through his brain in a scene that turned MacCready's stomach. Often he wore power amour, stomping raiders to a paste, and it would've been impressive if it wasn't so loud and irritating.

Though he was always charging into danger and leaving a trail of death behind him, he confirmed MacCready's suspicions: he was an idiot. He handed out caps like they were nothing, helping any settler with a sob story even if it meant fighting through a horde of feral ghouls in a house that could collapse any minute. He trusted MacCready like he wasn't a random gun hired in a bar who could put a bullet through his skull while he was sleeping, not a worry about letting the sniper take watch.

Stimpaks and med-x filled his pack, and if he ever ran out and went down it would only be a moment before the boss was at his side, to use his own stimpaks on him.

It was, frankly, fucking annoying.

On the bright side, he had no qualms about stealing from the well-off, especially around Diamond City, whose residents he didn't care for. Pickpocketing didn't come to him quite as easily as shooting, but getting paid to jimmy open locks and sneak caps from passers-by was definitely one of the perks of the job.

Isaac was overly friendly, but a smartass, so he wasn't unbearable as far as conversation went. He didn't pry, and the only time he let the conversation veer towards the personal was when he explained why he hired MacCready, beyond helping to kill Kellogg. 

"I'm trying to track down the Institute," he told him the day after visiting the memory den, then explained what he'd actually done there. MacCready raised his eyebrows and thought, not for the first or last time, that he should be paid a lot more for this.

"The _institute_?!"

Isaac grinned widely, like this wouldn't be the first time someone told him it was impossible, hopeless, _idiotic_.

"You know what they say: go big or go home. I can't go home, so I guess that leaves one option." 

MacCready didn't ask what he meant, didn't care, had no interest in getting chummy.

But he thought to himself: if anyone could do it, Isaac could.

 

**Author's Note:**

> it's been ages since I've written anything, and this is my second fallout fic so apologies if I don't have Mac's voice right. also this was originally supposed to be PWP but clearly that didn't happen.


End file.
